Thursday, September 01, 2011

Mags, Louis, Brandon, John, Misty, and Kae played the cold war horror RPG Cold City from Contested Ground Studios.

The Cold City RPG is set in Berlin, and so the RPG Buffet decided to explore German food for the evening. John made a Bavarian Pork Roast from AllRecipes.com with potatoes, Misty bought German bread and a butter kuchen from a local bakery, Mags contributed Pikanter Moehrensalat from About.com, Brandon made both red cabbage and cucumbers with dill from AllRecipes.com, and dessert was a homemade German chocolate cake made by Kae's mom. We served it all up with German beer that Steve brought, and homemade pear brandy from Brandon's dad!

Pikanter Moehrensalat

A tasty alternative to Carrot and Raisin Salad recipes. This shredded carrot salad has nuts and cheese which are optional, but no mayonnaise. Cayenne pepper gives it a little kick. Makes carrot salad for 2 people.
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 10 minutes

Grate carrots (and parsley root, if you can find it) and mix with lemon juice. Add chopped parsley and cheese cubes, if using, and mix. Sprinkle nuts on top. This can refrigerate until the meal is ready. Shortly before you serve salad, mix yogurt with sweetener, salt and Cayenne pepper and mix with carrot salad. Serve cold.

Notes: Parsley root is sweeter than parsnips, the lemon juice will keep it from browning. I have not found parsley root in the stores in the US. If you take this to a picnic, don't mix the yogurt into the carrots until you are ready to eat, otherwise, the yogurt separates and makes the salad watery.

Place water in a large saucepan, and stir in cabbage, apples, brown sugar, vinegar, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and 1 tablespoon butter. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and cover. Simmer 45 minutes, stirring occasionally, until cabbage is tender. Stir in remaining butter before serving.

COVER bottoms of 3 (9-inch) round pans with waxed paper; spray sides with cooking spray. Microwave chocolate and water in large microwaveable bowl on HIGH 1-1/2 to 2 min. or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 1 min. Stir until chocolate is completely melted.

BEAT egg whites in small bowl with mixer on high speed until stiff peaks form; set aside. Mix flour, baking soda and salt. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with mixer until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each. Blend in melted chocolate and vanilla. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating until well blended after each addition.

BAKE 30 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Immediately run small spatula around cakes in pans. Cool cakes in pans 15 min.; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.

Spread Coconut-Pecan Filling and Frosting between cake layers and onto top of cake. This delicate cake will have a flat slightly sugary top crust which tends to crack. The frosting will cover up these cracks.

BEAT egg yolks, milk and vanilla in large saucepan with whisk until well blended. Add sugar and butter; cook on medium heat 12 min. or until thickened and golden brown, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.